Rise of the Planar Trade Consortium

Planescape mercantilism

Run 54 Rise of the PTC: The MacGuffin, pt. II

7

MAR/11

Guarding the entrance to the tower that contains the Library of Kas are a force of angels. Veteran angels of valor move up to engage the players, backing them angels of protection guard an angel of battle, all show the heraldry and marks of their allegiance to Vecna openly. The angel of battle, and some angels of protection, push past the party front lines and engage Njalla and Sioned, Alruna holds some back, but in the end the battle goes to the heroes.

Exiting up a back staircase the party enters the library proper. Within they discover more signs that time has been stopped inside of the tower. They also discover that the library is twisted up in time and space, and that navigating it is not an easy task. After hours of evaluation and searching Njalla manages to decipher the patterns of the library enough to progress the party up to the uppermost level, where they find a secret door with a stair leading upwards.

The stair proves to be trapped, and turns into a slippery slide that deposits everyone back down in the library again. Rook takes several tries to climb back up to the trap, but fails to disarm it. Eventually he succeeds in progressing to the top and eats poisoned arrows as he opens the door at the top of the stairs. The poison fails to slay him, as do the arrows themselves, and eventually he and Alruna succeed in hauling the rest of the group up with ropes.

Atop the stairs the group finds themselves in a finely appointed set of private rooms. As in the library time is clearly being held in abeyance; candles have not burned down and even the water in the bath is still hot. Another staircase leads them further upwards, to a magical laboratory.

In the lab they discover the inter-planar nexus in question. It appears to be a gateway in constant flux that is held together by powerful magic centered in a pyramidal object that glows to brightly to get a clear view of. They loot various notes and books from the lab, and grab a portrait from the quarters below that they believe is Kas. In the end, after more examination and taking of notes, they decide to grab the nexus engine at the center of the gate when Giilos notices that a portal is beginning to form. (they fear that Vecna has noticed their work and they don’t relish what might be sent at them)

The nexus engine proves to be a set of six long bones. When removed from the gateway it collapses, and the magic holding back time from the tower begins to collapse as well. The party flees the tower as it falls apart around them. (later examination will reveal that the portrait and all the books/notes they took have also fallen to dust as time catches them up)

Hours of work clearing rubble and sand away finally allow the party to break through to the surface after the tower’s fall collapses their original entrance to the ruins. They take a short rest and then prepare to summon the giant eagles for a return flight to their exit portal. They are interrupted by a group of tribal humans who come upon them mid-ritual. Jovail seems a competent leader and commands the “Blue Wheel Clan”, as they call themselves. The group and the clan share food and water, and talk. (mostly of how the clans have been vanishing unexpectedly) The group passes on to the Blue Wheel Clan word of the new entrance to the ruins below, which the clan plans to explore more in the future.

Suddenly a gate opens near the encamped parties. Giants, armed and armored as a civilized nation, burst out of the gate and with a bellowed “In the name of Erathis cleanse the rebel scum!” charge into battle!